Open star clusters as a research area encompass the observational and theoretical study of gravitationally bound, relatively young stellar groupings in galactic disks, used as laboratories for stellar and Galactic astrophysics. Research focuses on their formation, dynamical evolution, and dissolution in the Galactic tidal field; detailed determination of their ages, distances, and metallicities; and the characterization of stellar populations, mass functions, and binary fractions. Open clusters are key tracers of Galactic structure, chemical evolution, and star formation history, and are investigated through multiwavelength photometry, high-resolution spectroscopy, astrometry, and N-body simulations to constrain models of stellar evolution and cluster dynamics.
Astronomers have discovered a stellar cluster hidden in the crowded disk of the Milky Way. The object, named Garro 04, was first identified as an unusual collection of stars in observations from the VVVX survey and was later ...
Indonesian astronomers have conducted a comprehensive study of an open cluster in the constellation Norma, known as NGC 6134. Results of the new study, available in a research paper published June 23 on the preprint server ...
Using the Large Sky Area Multi-Object Fiber Spectroscopic Telescope (LAMOST), astronomers have observed a nearby young open cluster known as NGC 1647. Results of the new observations, presented in a paper published April ...
Astronomers from Egypt and Turkey have conducted a comprehensive analysis of kinematic, structural, and astrophysical parameters of a nearby open cluster known as NGC 2168. Results of the new study, published March 23 on ...
Cancer the Crab is a dim constellation, yet it contains one of the most beautiful and easy-to-spot star clusters in our sky: the Beehive Cluster. Cancer also possesses one of the most studied exoplanets: the superhot super-Earth, ...
Astronomy
Mar 18, 2026
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Astronomers have analyzed the images collected by the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) to investigate a galactic open cluster known as NGC 2158. Results of the study, published Feb. 25 on the arXiv pre-print server, provide essential ...
Using ESA's Gaia satellite, astronomers have investigated three open clusters in the galactic disk, namely Berkeley 17, 18 and 39. Results of the new study, published January 21 on the arXiv pre-print server, yield crucial ...
Astronomers from the National Research Institute of Astronomy and Geophysics (NRIAG) in Cairo, Egypt, have investigated a young open cluster known as Czernik 38. As a result, they found a new open cluster, which turns out ...
By analyzing the data from ESA's Gaia satellite, Chinese astronomers have investigated the structure of a nearby open cluster known as NGC 752. The new study identified four substructures and delivered evidence for mass segregation ...
The final ESA/Webb Picture of the Month feature for 2025 showcases a festive-looking region filled with glowing clouds of gas and thousands of sparkling stars. This star cluster, known as Westerlund 2, resides in a stellar ...
Astronomy
Dec 19, 2025
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